Project "Marfa": Sets.

When I first read the script for our little short, I was both excited and a little scared, because I had no idea where to even start preparing for it. Initially I consciously avoided getting tied down to any distinct vision, since many of the final decisions would end up being dictated by what was available, and not by the flight of my fancy.

I decided to start with locations for the practical reason of the location being potentially the most limiting aspect and also the least controllable and alterable, given our lacking resources.

The location had to satisfy some pretty restrictive parameters:

– being remote enough not to betray proximity to the modern civilization even in the background.

– close by the water to have a beach or sanded area for the ritual to take place, since there had to be water spirits in the ritual itself.

– allow  for a good range of accessible angles for shooting.

– preferably have wooded areas nearby to shoot pursuit scenes (prophecy sequence) without having to extend shooting days or travel time between locations.

– be a deserted enough place to allow for a full day of shooting without being disturbed or causing disturbance to others.

The first and the last of these parameters were related, and satisfying one would likely satisfy the other, but finding such places within easy distance of NYC is not a very easy task, especially on summer weekends, when the good half of New York population leaves the city streets in a very similar search of nature, water and relative solitude.

After spending some late spring-early summer weekends outdoors, I settled on these 3 choices for the main scene:

Location Option #1 Location Option #2 Location Option #3 Location Option #3

More about the choices after the jump...

Project "Marfa": Introduction.

Onе early morning in last August, three cars started out from three different states, carrying 7 people, 4 swords, and 2 trunks full of costumes and props. This strange company arrived at the designated meeting place in Sleepy Hollow, NY, all 7 still fairly sleepy themselves, and proceeded to spend the day (the first of several), shooting a short opera music video.

This is the story of how and why it all happened and why I ended up being one of the seven sleepy travelers in Sleepy Hollow that day.